Inset: Azyia Zielinski (Milwaukee County Sheriff’s Office). Background: The inside of the storage unit where the couple allegedly locked their six kids (MCSO).
A 26-year-old mother in Wisconsin will avoid prison after she and her husband were caught leaving their six children — four of whom were under the age of 6 — locked inside a storage unit overnight with only a bucket to use as a restroom.
A Milwaukee County judge on Thursday stayed a prison sentence for Azyia C. Zielinski in favor of probation after the mother pleaded guilty to two misdemeanor counts of child neglect.
During Thursday’s sentencing hearing, prosecutors recommended 18 months in a state correctional facility to be stayed for three years of probation, provided she complete an alcohol and drug abuse assessment, parenting class, mental health treatment, and maintain complete sobriety.
The state chose not to delve into the underlying facts of Zielinski’s crimes, only referring to the ordeal as a “tremendously sad case for the six child victims.”
In recommending a probationary disposition focused primarily on the defendant’s rehabilitation, the prosecutor said the punishment was “proportionate to Zielinski’s level of culpability and her actions in this case,” adding that she was “significantly less culpable” than her husband.
“She was in an emotionally and physically abusive relationship and that context is critical to understanding her conduct,” he said. “This was not an equal partnership. It was a one-directional, controlling relationship.”
The prosecutor also emphasized that Zielinski testified truthfully against her husband during his trial.
Zielinski’s defense attorney requested 18 months of probation, saying three years was “beyond what is necessary” for her rehabilitation, a process she said the defendant had already begun. She also emphasized that Zielinski was “incredibly remorseful” for what she put her children through.
The judge ultimately sided with Zielinski, ordering her to serve 18 months in prison, staying that sentence in favor of 18 months of probation.
As Law&Crime previously reported, officers with the Milwaukee Police Department at 1:33 a.m. on Sept. 16, 2025, responded to a report of a crying child inside a locked storage unit at the Storsafe in the 5500 block of North 27th Street. The caller told the dispatcher they were concerned for the welfare of the baby.
Upon arriving at the facility, first responders heard a child still crying inside storage unit B58, which had a garage-style door secured with a padlock. Fire department personnel cut the padlock to gain entry.
After the officer announces, “Milwaukee Police, we’re coming in,” he enters the pitch-black unit and can be heard saying, “Hey, what’s going on here?” according to the video played in court, some of which was posted by local ABC affiliate WISN.
The footage shows a sectional couch and twin bed surrounded by mounds of items, including a single bucket that authorities say the children were forced to use as a toilet.
Officer Nash Dathe reportedly testified that the unit smelled “like it was being used as a bathroom.”
A criminal complaint obtained by Law&Crime provided additional observations made by police after entering the storage unit.
“Inside, they observed a bucket containing urine in the middle of the room and six children ranging in age from 2 months to 9 years. Detectives later learned that the only light visible to the children came through the crack of the garage door,” the complaint says. “[A detective] entered the unit and observed the six children sleeping. Five-year-old ‘ED’ told [the detective], ‘We’re not supposed to be loud.’ Shortly afterward, ED urinated in an orange bucket in the center of the unit.”
The oldest child told investigators that he was “responsible for caring for his five younger siblings” when his parents were not around. Aside from the 2-month-old infant, the children were 9, 7, 5, 3, and 2 years old.
“[The 9-year-old] reported that he stays at the storage unit about 50% of the time and that they use a bucket to urinate and defecate,” the affidavit says. “[The 9-year-old] stated he is supposed to give the 2-month-old a bottle or pacifier and pick her up when she cries. [The 9-year-old] told [the detective] he was hungry and had no device to contact his parents or anyone else in an emergency.”
Police said the stench from inside was “so putrid they could not remain inside even with the garage door open.”
An employee at the facility allegedly told investigators that he remembered in May hearing a male voice inside the unit saying “Sit down and be quiet,” and saw surveillance footage of the children being dropped off at the unit by their parents, which he reported to management.
At 2:11 a.m., authorities located Dupriest and Zielinski sleeping in a Ford Expedition parked in the lot along with their dog. Officers noted that the middle row of the vehicle was completely unoccupied while all the children, including their infant, were in the storage unit.
Dupriest and Zielinski said the family was “homeless,” but admitted the children could have been staying with other family members.
In a forensic interview, the 5-year-old girl victim, identified as “LD,” said she “felt ‘sad’ when locked in the storage unit and ‘mad’ so she made the unit dirty.”
“She said she tried to open the door but could not,” the affidavit said. “She reported using a bucket to urinate and defecate, sometimes with a bag placed inside. She said she was upset the dog got to sleep in the car while she and her siblings slept in the unit. LD stated her parents went to bed while the children were still awake. She said her father carried a firearm, pointing to her hip.”
The 9-year-old said his father disciplines him with “whoopings,” and that after one such whooping, he thought he should go to the hospital.
